by Rupe | Jul 19, 2016 | Deep Thoughts, Reflections, Social-Race Issues, what the...?
Jimmie Williams joins demonstrators in a protest outside of City Hall calling on Mayor Rahm Emanuel to resign on December 11, 2015 in Chicago, Illinois. A recently released video of the shooting of Laquan McDonald by Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke has sparked protests and calls for Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez to resign for allegedly trying to cover up the circumstances surrounding the shooting.SCOTT OLSON/GETTY IMAGES
I was a grad student at the UCLA film school, getting my MFA in screenwriting, when a consumer-trends company asked me to work for them. Why did they want me? Well, they advised major corporations on how to best situate their products for the African-American consumer market, and in order to do that effectively, the company needed people who understood African-American values and behavior and could turn those factors into macro trends. In essence, my job was to predict the things black people did today to hint at future behavior and, from that info, identify the strategies companies should use to reach black people.
Source: Black America Is Leaving While Staying Put
My Comments: Well written – captures the sentiments of the majority of black folks. We’ve got to start tending our own gardens – there is no sustenance in hope, no love in fear and the hot rage and meanness of racism knows no bounds. We are way too beautiful for this shit!
by Rupe | Jul 13, 2016 | Money Matters
The stock market just hit another record high. Yet only half of Americans actually own any stock. Real estate prices are ebbing closer to their previous bubble peak. Yet the homeownership rate is down. The unemployment rate is down dramatically but we have over 94 million Americans not in
Source: With a recovery like this, who needs a recession: 62 percent of Americans don’t even have $1000 in savings.
My Comments: I have been a bank teller so this hit very close to home. The inequities grows, something must give.
by Rupe | Jul 11, 2016 | Money Matters
The Great Recession is over. The economy is back on its feet. That’s the popular narrative Americans see and hear every day, but the impact of the financial crisis is still being felt across the country, especially by women of color. A new report (pdf) highlights how “pinklining,” a term most people have probably never heard, is hurting women and especially women of color.
Source: Pinklining: The Financial Threat More Women of Color Are Facing
My Comments: The struggle of black and brown folks. We need to take collective responsibility for more of these issues within our communities.
by Rupe | Jul 10, 2016 | Mad Musings, what the...?
Schools should be held to higher standards than students. If schools irresponsibly impose discipline practices, then those rules (or leaders) should be expelled. However, when it comes to discipline, we give students the cane and schools a slap on the wrist.
Source: Stop Punishing Black Children Just Because They’re Black
Comments: The punishment of black and brown people start early. The devaluing of our lives starts from the earliest ages. This narrative will change – by the hook or the crook.
by Rupe | Jul 10, 2016 | Mad Musings
It’s a terrible waste of taxpayer money.
Since 1990, state and local spending on prisons and jails has risen more than three times faster than spending on schools, according to a new Department of Education report released Thursday.
Source: The states that spend more money on prisoners than…
My Comments: Embarrassingly nasty statistics. I live in Florida and don’t want my F’king money spent on locking up my brothers and sisters.
